South Carolina has been impeccable at home in recent seasons with an 18-0 SU and 12-6 ATS record over its last 18 home games.

The No. 9 Gamecocks will take on the visiting No. 21 Texas A&M Aggies on Thursday night in marquee college football odds action.

The Gamecocks are a 10.5-point favorite for Thursday night's SEC matchup against Texas A&M, and Kenny Hill will be making his first start at quarterback for the Aggies as Johnny Manziel has departed for the NFL. Texas A&M has gone 8-2 SU over its last 10 road games.

The Georgia Dome will play host to a game on Thursday night between the Boise State Broncos and the No. 18 Mississippi Rebels. Boise State enjoyed a 92-12 SU record under head coach Chris Petersen over the last eight seasons, but they move into a new era with Brian Harsin this year.

The Broncos are a 10-point underdog against Ole Miss.

On Saturday, the Georgia Dome will host another big game between the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide and the West Virginia Mountaineers. When this game was scheduled years ago, it was projected to be a game between two college football powerhouses.

But here in 2014, it looks more like a tuneup game for the Crimson Tide. Alabama is a 25.5-point favorite.

Two ranked teams take to the field on Saturday when the No. 12 Georgia Bulldogs host the No. 16 Clemson Tigers. All eyes are on Clemson's offense as the team is tasked with replacing last year's starting quarterback and two top running backs and wide receivers. Georgia is favored by 7.5 points at home.

The No. 14 Wisconsin Badgers and the No. 13 LSU Tigers meet at NRG Stadium in Texas for what looks on paper to be one of the best matchups of the week. Wisconsin's Heisman hopeful Melvin Gordon could make an early statement by leading his team to an upset win over LSU. The Badgers are a 4.5-point underdog.

No. 1 Florida State begins its national title defense as a 17.5-point favorite against Oklahoma State at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Florida State was 14-0 SU and 11-3 ATS in 2013.

If you think Germany can repeat its seven-goal outburst in the World Cup Final, there is a huge payout for believers in a rout against Argentina.

At one online sportsbook, it’s a +3400 wager and even if they win by just four goals, that is a +1800 payout.

Of course, the semifinal blowout of Brazil (7-1) was a historic rout that may never be seen again. But unlike that game, where you couldn’t even bet on a 7-1 final because it was too preposterous, this time the books are offering the odds.

Topbet.eu had the Germans as early -175 favorites to win the game, with the Argentines as +145 underdogs. Of note, the World Cup has been hosted in South America four times and a ‘home’ team has won every time.

The three-way line (which includes a draw a the end of regulation time, 90 minutes) had the Germans at +140 with the Argentines at +250 and the draw line at +225, according to the World Cup finals odds pages.

Argentina may get creative midfielder Angel di Maria back for this game. He was injured in the quarter-final match and did not play as the Argentines defeated Holland in the semi final.

Without him, the attack was stunted and the Dutch focused plenty if marking attention on Lionel Messi the entire match.

Germany, however, had no stunting of their offense as they erupted for five goals in 19 minutes of the first half to blast Brazil. No team had ever scored so much in a World Cup match and Brazil’s previous worst loss was 3-0.

This is a rematch of the 1990 World Cup where the Germans won 1-0 on a late penalty shot.

Much has changed in the world since that time. West Germany reunified with the East later in 1990 and quarterfinalists Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia are no longer countries, having broken apart since then.

Watch the latest World Cup odds and the current Golden Boot betting numbers (where Thomas Muller and Messi still have a shot at catching goals leader James Rodriguez of Colombia.

Thursday's World Cup opener between Brazil and Croatia had a little bit of everything; some great goals, some controversial calls and even an own goal.

Brazil came away with a 3-1 victory in the end, and the 2014 World Cup is officially underway. Friday's card features two more late games after controversy swirled earlier today in Mexico’s victory over Cameroon.

Will the curious officiating impact World Cup betting strategy for over-under wagering?

Group B: Spain vs. Netherlands

While this match may be a rematch of the 2010 World Cup final, soccer betting experts aren't anticipating that this will be as competitive of a game.

Spain is a -125 favorite on the three-way line with the Netherlands paying +400 on an upset and a draw result going off at +240. Netherlands backers can also bet the team at +0.5 at +105.

Spain enters this match as one of the tournament favorites at 6/1 to win the World Cup. Spain's 4-3-3 formation has led the team to two straight European Championships and the 2010 World Cup, and will once again be on display in Brazil.

Netherlands looked shaky through the qualifying round and enters the 2014 World Cup with plenty of question marks, but a strong performance against Spain would be a massive boost to morale.

The total in this match is set at two goals. Only one goal was scored in five of Spain's seven games during the 2010 World Cup.

Group B: Chile vs. Australia

Australia is the projected floor mat of Group B, and Chile will try to take advantage of that with a win on Friday afternoon. Chile is a -250 favorite to win the match outright, Australia is a +750 long shot to win and the draw is +350.

On the two-way line, Chile is -1.0 at -130 while Australia is +1.0 at +110. The total is set at 2.5 goals.

Chile has a lot of things going for it heading into World Cup play. The team's relentless attack produces plenty of offense and gives opposing defenses fits, which is expected to be the case against a vulnerable Australian side in this one.

Chile has been in top form of late and will be comfortable playing in the conditions of South America. Australia figures to have its hands full in this match.

The NBA Finals presents the same scenario as in 2013, when the San Antonio Spurs opened the series as slight favorites.

But seven games later, the Miami Heat held the NBA championship trophy, upset winners in 2013.

This year, the Spurs are favored again, both in the series and in Game 1 which creates some interesting angles and considerations for fans with bets on the NBA Finals.

The Heat have lost six straight games as road underdogs and are just 1-5 ATS in that time. Contrast that with San Antonio’s 7-0 SU and ATS streak when favored at home and you have a potential wager at -4.

But looking ahead to a series price bet, what is the most likely outcome? According to Topbet and some other shops, it’s the Spurs in seven games. That is currently a +290 wager.

The Heat winning in six games is next at +400, while the Spurs in six games is priced at +450.

A Miami sweep would pay out a whopping +1400 while a Spurs sweep is good for +1200.

American horse racing hasn't seen a Triple Crown champion in 35 years, but for the 13th time since then a horse – this one a Cinderella story from California Chrome – heads into the last of the Crown races, the Belmont Stakes, with a chance to add its name to the record books.

This year's Belmont Stakes betting party involves three tiers of betting; a big favorite, a short list of potential spoilers and a contingent of long shots. Here's how some Belmont Stakes betting odds looked as of early this week.

California Chrome has won his last six races. His last three times out he romped to victory in the Santa Anita Stakes back on April 5; then became the first Cal-bred to win the Kentucky Derby in over 50 years, besting a field of 19 back on May 3 at Churchill Downs.

And most recently he held off a field of 10 to win the Preakness Stakes May 17 at Pimlico.

Now he's faced with possibly his toughest task yet; going against a talented field that includes a couple sets of fresh legs in the longest run of his career, the mile-and-a-half Belmont.

As of early this week, online US racebooks had a price of +120 on California Chrome completing the Crown sweep with a victory in the Belmont.

Ride on Curlin, who finished a good second in the Preakness, was getting +800 at to win Saturday's Belmont Stakes.

Commanding Curve, who finished second in the Kentucky Derby at odds of 38/1, then skipped the Preakness, was getting +800 at some horse racing shops monitored by Odds Shark.

Tonalist is a newcomer to the Crown events, but owns a win on the Belmont track, in the Peter Pan Stakes three weeks ago. BetOnline was offering +850 on Tonalist to win the Belmont.

Wicked Strong won the Wood Memorial in come-from-behind fashion, then finished fourth in the Derby despite starting from the 19 hole. He'll also be ridden by New York-based jockey Rajiv Maragh, who very familiar with the Belmont track. Bovada was offering odds of 17/2 on Wicked Strong on its Belmont board.

Samraat began his career by winning his first five races, including his debut at Belmont back in October. He then finished second in the Wood and fifth in the Derby. He's getting 22/1 to win the Belmont at Bovada.

Finally, Social Inclusion, who finished third in both the Wood and the Preakness, was getting +3000 on TopBet's Belmont betting board.

The last horse to win the American Triple Crown remains Affirmed, who pulled the trick back in 1978.

The draw for post positions for the 146th running of the Belmont Stakes will take place Wednesday morning. The race itself is slated to go off at 6:52 pm ET Saturday, with NBC providing the live television coverage.

California Chrome continues to be bet heavily in advanced wagering for the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes on Saturday.

The Kentucky Derby winner is likely to end up at 3-5 or possibly less by the time the gate opens at Pimlico.

Favorites have fared well in the second jewel of the Triple Crown, but betting chalk is not for everyone. Horses exiting the Derby have historically had the advantage over new shooters, horses that either skipped the Derby or did not qualify.

This year there are only two others exiting the Derby and coming back in two weeks to attempt to turn the tables on California Chrome. That means 15 passed, a big number.

Both that are making the trip to Baltimore had less than stellar trips over the Churchill Downs main track on the first Saturday of May.

General a Rod is sitting at 15-1 Preakness Stakes odds posted over at Bovada and did not have a good trip in the Kentucky Derby where he checked in 11th at 30-1. The colt was taken off the pace (and he was up on the pace in his final two Derby preps), had to steady when caught in tight quarters after six furlongs, and then was angled down to the rail on the far turn which can be a tough place in such a large field.

His jockey Joel Rosario angled him back out, then back in where he found some more trouble and had to steady in deep stretch. Rosario committed to Ride On Curlin but we get a good replacement in Javier Castellano.

The colt should get off better and should be sitting close to the chalk. A similar trip to the favorite should put him right in the mix if he is good enough.

Ride On Curlin also exits the Derby and was seventh and is listed at betting odds of 10-1. We have seen in previous years that runners coming back in two weeks seem to fire better than the new shooters that skip or do not make it into the Derby field.

The colt was taken back to last early while jockey Calvin Borel saved ground, had to steady off heels entering the stretch, was angled out very wide and drifted out even wider while making up some late ground.

With a better trip this guy should be sitting in the second flight and if the fast pace duel develops he will be around to pick up the pieces late.

See Preakness picks and packages for fairly priced informatio nto help you win on Saturday at Turfnsport.com.

It’s less than three weeks until the cards will be in the air at the Rio in Las Vegas for the start of the 2014 World Series of Poker.

As usual, the WSOP gets underway with the local dealers' No Limit Hold’em tournament on May 27. After one of the dealers claps a WSOP bracelet around their wrist events will continue for nearly two months.

There are 65 events on the WSOP schedule this year, concluding with the $10,000 No Limit Hold’em World Championship Main Event, with many of the qualifiers earning their way into the tournament via online poker competitions.

This year’s Main Event gets underway on July 5. Last year’s Main Event drew 6,352 players and at least that many are expected to try their luck again this year.

The Main Event may begin in July, but once again this year the winner won’t be crowned until November. The final nine players won't bag up their chips until November 10 when the November Nine have a showdown for the big pot and the title of World Champion.

At Bovada, they’re slowly starting to roll out the WSOP betting odds with a few interesting prop bets available. Leading the list is the birth country of the main event winner.

The favorite in the category is the USA at -175, while the rest of the world is lumped in together at +135. Taking a chance on the rest of the world may be worth the risk though.

Americans have won the last two WSOP titles, including Michigan’s Ryan Riess, last year’s winner. However, before the back-to-back American champs, two international players were the last man standing with German Pius Heinz winning in ’11 and Canadian Jonathan Duhamel becoming the first Canuck champ in ’10.

Out of the last 10 WSOP champs, five were American and five were international players.

The WSOP props list also asks if a former winner will claim the prize again (yes +600/no -1200), if a female will make the final table (yes +900/no -2000), and how old the winner will be (27 years or older -140/ 26 years and 364 days and younger +100).

The chances of a former winner repeating are extremely low considering how large the field is in the tournament. In fact, a former winner hasn’t reclaimed the top prize since the late Stu Unger won his third WSOP title in 1997. That’s 17 years and counting.

The number of women in the WSOP field has been steadily growing over the years, but it hasn’t kept the final table from continually being an all-boys club. Only one female player has ever made the final table – Barbara Enright in 1995.

On the last prop, the age of the 2014 WSOP champ, it should come as no surprise that under 27 is an EVEN money favorite.

The WSOP main event has become a young man’s event in recent years. The last six champions were all 25 years old or younger and someone older than 27 hasn’t won since Jerry Yang’s big win in 2007 at the ripe old age of 39.

As host nation of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, it is no surprise that Brazil sits atop the list of favorites, sporting odds of 3-1 in futures wagering to win their sixth World Cup title.

Argentina (9-2), Germany (11-2) and defending champion Spain (13-2) round out the top of the World Cup betting class. However, wagering opportunities still exist for soccer fans from every part of the world.

There are odds on which continent will win the World Cup and plenty of others focused on each continent.

Spain might be the defending World Cup champs, but Germany currently sits as 2-1 favorites to finish as the tournament’s top European team.

The Germans claimed their last World Cup title in 1990 and have not suffered a loss in international competition since a 4-3 defeat by the United States in June of last year.

Not surprisingly, the host Brazilians, who are heavy favorites to win the 2014 World Cup, are the top South American team sporting odds of 5-6. But a great deal of competition can be found in South America.

Two-time World Cup champs Argentina are second to Brazil in futures wagering for both World Cup champion and top South American team. The Argentines are pegged at 9-2 to win it all and 8-5 to be South America’s best.

[ See World Cup matchup stats, live odds and trends on every game ]

The USA and Mexico battled to an exciting 2-2 draw in a recent friendly in Glendale, Arizona. The results of that match are mirrored in the odds as to who will be the top North American team at the 2014 World Cup.

Mexico struggled through a difficult 2013, during which the team made three coaching changes. Mexico also must contend with host Brazil in the group stage. However, oddsmakers peg them as -125 favorites to be the best North American side at this year’s tourney, followed by the USA at +120.

Betting on the top African team provides intriguing opportunities. Ivory Coast, ranked No. 21 in the world, might enjoy the benefit of a good draw going into the World Cup’s Group Stage.

Cote d’Ivoire are pegged as +125 favorites to be the best of Africa, followed at +225 by Ghana, the Cinderella story of 2010. However, Ghana will have to overachieve to contend in a group that includes Germany, Portugal and the United States.

Coming into the postseason, the Miami Heat were 2/1 favorites to win the NBA championship with Indiana and San Antonio considered to be two of their biggest threats.

With those two teams struggling with their first-round matchups, Miami looks like an even stronger favorite at 7/4 to win it all on the latest NBA future odds lists at OddsShark.com.

San Antonio trailed by 10 in the fourth quarter of Game 1 against Dallas before going on a 15-0 run to win the game. But the Spurs were down big again in Game 2, and couldn't mount the comeback in a shocking 113-92 home loss to the Mavericks.

After being dominated through most of the first two games of the series, those looking to bet on NBA action have seen San Antonio fall from 3/1 to 11/4 to win the NBA championship in 2014.

Indiana's stock also took a hit this week as the Pacers split their first two games against Atlanta and appeared to have matchup issues with Roy Hibbert against Atlanta's speed. The Pacers have fallen from 6/1 to win the championship down to 15/2.

While San Antonio and Indiana have seen their odds get adjusted slightly due to splitting their first two games at home, two home teams dropped both of their first games at home and have seen their stocks plummet because of it.

The Houston Rockets entered the playoffs going off at 20/1 to win the NBA championship, but those odds are now down to 50/1 as the Portland Trail Blazers have won the first two games of the series in Houston.

Portland appears to be peaking at the right time with an 11-1 SU and 8-4 ATS record over its last 12 games, and is up to 20/1 after starting the playoffs at 40/1 to win the title.

Out East, the Chicago Bulls were 40/1 to win the championship, but they are all the way down to 150/1 after losing the first two games of the series to Washington. The Wizards are up to 66/1 from 150/1 and are 7-3 SU and 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games against Chicago.

Entering the final month of the season, Juventus look poised to claim their third straight Serie A championship.

With many key Juventus members also on the Azzuri at World Cup 2014 in Brazil, Italians are hoping Juventus success breeds World Cup success.

Dominant in league play, 16-3-1 SU in their last 20 games, Juventus have fallen short in international competitions; finishing eighth in the International Champions Cup, and getting eliminated in the Group Stage of UEFA Champions League competition by Galatasaray.

Juventus’ most difficult test of the season may come this week, as they face Benefica in the UEFA Europa League semifinal. [ Serie A betting odds, matchup reports ]

While Juventus is a -220 favorite to get past Benefica and a -110 favorite to win the Europa League title, Italian soccer fans may be more concerned about the impact of Juventus veterans on the nation’s fortunes at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

The Juventus roster currently includes as many as nine players who could don the Azzurro Savoia for Italy. Italy’s Juventus contingent is led by goalkeeper Gigi Buffon. Captain of both Juve and the Italian national team, Buffon was the hero of Italy’s 2006 World Cup win.

However, an injury limited Buffon to just 45 minutes of action in 2010, when the Italians entered the tourney at 14-1 but were eliminated in the Group Stage after failing to record a win.

Going into this year’s World Cup, Italy is positioned outside the group of favorites, sporting odds of 22-1 to win their fifth title. Italy’s World Cup effort will be bolstered by Juventus defenders Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini, who was anointed as the world’s seventh best footballer in a recent Top 50 list.

Juventus will not be contributing any players pegged as favorites to lead the World Cup in goals scored. The only Italians sporting odds to be top scorer are Mario Balotelli of AC Milan at 33-1, Giuseppe Rossi of ACF Fiorentina at 66-1 and Alberto Gilardino of Genoa CFC at 80-1.

However, Juventus will be providing the services of one of the game’s best at free kicks. Nicknamed “l’architetto” (The Architect), Andrea Pirlo is also regarded as one of the best passers in the game.

Pirlo, who turns 35 in May, has one goal and three assists in two World Cup tournaments, and one goal and five assists in 10 World Cup qualifying matches dating back to last season.

For Italy’s odds to win the World Cup and updated future lines on all 32 nations taking part in Brazil 2014, check out WorldCupOdds.net.